911 Briefs -- Published May 17, 2014

LODI - Flames from a three-alarm fire lit up the night sky late Thursday night in east Lodi.

The Record, Modesto Bee

LODI - Flames from a three-alarm fire lit up the night sky late Thursday night in east Lodi.

Thirteen engine companies responded to the scene as dozens of firefighters battled the blaze, which was reported about 8:40 p.m. at the Tokay Recycling Center at 60 South Cluff Ave., Lodi Fire Department Division Chief Aimee New said.

Crews from the Stockton Fire Department, the Liberty Fire Department and the Mokelumne, Woodbridge and Waterloo Morada fire districts also responded to provide mutual aid, New said.

Personnel aboard a California Office of Emergency Services engine spotted the fire as they were refueling before heading to Southern California to fight the San Diego wildfires, New said.

"They did an excellent job of using a defensive attack," New said. "We had the initial attack within minutes of the fire beginning, and they were able to call in additional resources right away."

The fire destroyed wood pallets, tires, cardboard and plastic materials, but the damage could have been much worse, New said. Three structures were threatened and ultimately suffered smoke and heat damage, but crews contained the fire to an outside area, New said.

The blaze took nearly two hours to extinguish, New said. No one was injured, and the cause of the fire was still under investigation, she added.

STOCKTON - Video surveillance footage and social media helped investigators from the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office break up a large mail theft ring, authorities said.

Deputies received a report of a vehicle burglary about 6:30 a.m. Sunday at the Village Oak Center near Douglas Road and North Harrisburg Place in Stockton. Later, two people were captured on video using an ATM card that was stolen from the victim's vehicle, authorities said.

The Sheriff's Office posted a flier on its social media pages displaying images of the thieves.

Detectives and patrol deputies conducted surveillance Tuesday and subsequently stopped a vehicle occupied by Herrera and his three children. Inside the vehicle, they found stolen mail, authorities said. The children, ages 4, 8 and 10, were turned over to Child Protective Services.

Authorities served a search warrant at an apartment, where they found suitcases full of stolen mail, washed checks, electronics for making fraudulent checks and a credit card scanner, officials said. Sargent, Williams and Herrera were arrested on suspicion of numerous crimes, including mail theft and credit card fraud, authorities said.

OAKDALE - The man who drowned at Woodward Reservoir this week was identified as 44-year-old Tracy resident Antonio Peinado, the Stanislaus County Coroner's Office said Friday.

Peinado was attempting to swim without a life jacket across a cove the size of a football field when he went underwater and never resurfaced, Stanislaus County sheriff's Sgt. Keith Rakoncza said.

The Sheriff Department's dive team searched for Peinado until 10 p.m. Wednesday and resumed the search Thursday. Divers found his body at 9:30 a.m. in about 10 feet of water.

Heat and near zero visibility in the water complicated the search, Rakoncza said.